This included the fact that the country’s debt had risen to RM48.6 billion in the first five months of 2019.

This, the former finance minister said, represented a 64% increase from the RM29.5 billion recorded in 2017.

Najib also said the country’s deficit in the last five months of 2018 rose almost three-fold to RM25.3 billion, compared with the RM8.9 billion recorded in the same period of 2017.

“That the deficit rose almost threefold, Guan Eng says nothing.

“That the country’s debt rose 64%, he says nothing.

“Yet, when the deficit decreases by 39% because the bonuses were not paid, he issues a statement,” Najib said on Facebook, referring to the government’s decision to pay civil servants a bonus in December instead of in January as was done by the previous administration.

Earlier today, Lim said the government had successfully cut its fiscal deficit by 39% to RM21.4 billion in the first five months of 2019, down from RM35 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Lim also said Putrajaya had also lowered its current account deficit to RM1.1 billion in the January-May 2019 period, a reduction of 94%, or RM16 billion, from the RM17.1 billion deficit in the same period last year.

“Fiscal discipline has been instituted through a combination of tighter controls over operating expenditure in the form of wider application of open competitive tenders, and the implementation of zero-based budgeting,” he said in a statement today.

Najib went on to accuse the Pakatan Harapan administration of lying to the people to win.

“And after they won, they continue lying to the people.”